finished last in the AL West for three seasons prior, clinched a playoff berth on September 24, with Lucroy providing a home run in their 7–3 defeat of the Seattle Mariners. Their brief postseason run was cut short, however, with a 7–2 defeat to the New York Yankees in the 2018 American League Wild Card Game. Despite the loss, Lucroy did break Luis Severino's no-hitter with a single to left field in the fifth inning. Lucroy became a free agent at the end of the season, and although he was open to returning to Oakland, the two parties could not compromise on contractual terms. Los Angeles Angels (2019) The Los Angeles Angels, who were in need of a veteran supplement for young catchers José Briceño and Kevan Smith, signed Lucroy to a one-year, $3.35 million contract on December 28, 2018. Lucroy believed that his experience playing for the Athletics and Rangers, two teams that the Angels regularly faced as members of the AL West, would give him an advantage on his new team, and he also valued the opportunity to work under manager Brad Ausmus, a former MLB catcher. By May, Lucroy had become the team's starting catcher, receiving twice as much time at the plate as Smith, who became the backup. Lucroy caught in 67 games for the Angels, starting 61 behind the plate and posting a fielding percentage of .995 while throwing out 26 percent of attempted base runners. He also batted .242 in 74 games, with seven home runs and 30 RBI in 240 at bats. On July 7, 2019, Jake Marisnick was attempting to score on a sacrifice fly from George Springer in a tied game between the Angels and Houston Astros when he collided with Lucroy, who had been waiting at home plate. Marisnick was ruled out on the play for colliding with the opposing team's catcher, while Lucroy had difficulty getting up and had to be carted off the field with a nosebleed. He left the game to go to the local hospital, where he was diagnosed with a concussion and a broken nose. Kevan Smith and Dustin Garneau split catching duties while Lucroy, who said that he had no memory of the actual collision, recovered. Both Ausmus and Yadier Molina criticized Marisnick for the play, Marisnick was ultimately suspended for two games for a violation of Rule 6.01 (i), which was designed to